Matthew Frattin (born January 3, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger who is currently a free agent. He began his NHL career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the organization that drafted him 99th overall in 2007. Frattin also played in the NHL for the Los Angeles Kings and Columbus Blue Jackets before rejoining Toronto in 2014 via a trade. Frattin spent a further season and a half in the Maple Leafs organization before being included in a nine-player trade with the Ottawa Senators.

Matt Frattin
Frattin with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2012
Born (1988-01-03) January 3, 1988 (age 36)
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position Right wing
Shoots Right
team
Former teams
Free agent
Toronto Maple Leafs
Los Angeles Kings
Columbus Blue Jackets
Stockton Heat
Barys Nur-Sultan
Lausanne HC
Ak Bars Kazan
HC Bolzano
NHL draft 99th overall, 2007
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 2011–present

At the end of his senior season of college ice hockey with the University of North Dakota, in 2010–11, Frattin was honored as the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Player of the Year, also being named a Hobey Baker Award finalist.

Playing career

edit

Amateur

edit

Frattin was born in Edmonton, Alberta.[1] As a youth, he played in the 2001 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the North West Hawks minor ice hockey team from Edmonton.[2]

He played junior hockey for the Fort Saskatchewan Traders of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) during the 2006–07 season. After playing junior A ice hockey in Alberta, he was then selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the fourth round, 99th overall, of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He then enrolled at the University of North Dakota in 2007.[3]

In August of 2009, Frattin was dismissed from the UND squad due to a DUI -- his second alcohol-related run-in with the police in two months. Despite being offered a professional contract from the Maple Leafs, Frattin opted to return to school. With his scholarship taken away, he took out student loans and decided to earn his way back onto the roster. This was a success, as Frattin "cleaned" up his life and returned to become an integral part of the team.[4]

Frattin scored a key goal in North Dakota's playoff victory over rivals the University of Minnesota in the 2010 Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) playoffs.[citation needed] At the beginning of the 2010–11 season, Frattin won the team's fitness competition after working out extensively during the off-season.[3] In 2010, he also made headlines after the WCHA suspended him for one game due to a hit that he delivered against a Minnesota player.[5]

In the 2010–11 season, Frattin had a highly-productive offensive year, leading the entire NCAA Men's Division I in goal-scoring, with 36, a total eclipsing his combined total from his first three collegiate years combined.[6][7][8][9] His 36 goals was the third-highest single season total in Division I college hockey in the previous ten years, and the most since the University of Minnesota's Ryan Potulny scored 38 in the 2005–06 season. Frattin also set separate eight- and nine-game goal-scoring streaks during the season.[10] He played a key role in North Dakota's success in the playoffs, scoring two game-winning goals in the WCHA playoffs en route to a Frozen Four appearance. At the end of the season, Frattin was named WCHA Player of the Year and was selected as a Hobey Baker Award finalist.[11][12]

Professional

edit

On April 8, 2011, at the end of the WCHA season, Frattin signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He played in his first career NHL game the very next day, on April 9.[13] His first career NHL goal was scored in the 2011–12 season on November 19, 2011, against goaltender Tomáš Vokoun of the Washington Capitals.[14]

On July 1, 2012, Toronto signed Frattin to a two-year contract extension.[15] On June 23, 2013, Frattin was traded to the Los Angeles Kings, along with goaltender Ben Scrivens and a conditional second-round draft pick, in exchange for goaltender Jonathan Bernier.[16] On March 5, 2014, Frattin was again traded, this time to the Columbus Blue Jackets, along with a second-round pick and a conditional third-round pick, in exchange for All-Star Marián Gáborík.[17]

After 4 games in Columbus, Frattin was then traded from the Blue Jackets back to the Maple Leafs on July 1, 2014, in exchange for Jerry D'Amigo and 2015 conditional seventh-round draft pick.[18] He was then immediately signed to a two-year contract extension by Toronto.[citation needed]

Frattin spent most of his next two seasons in the AHL with the Marlies. In the 15–16 season, Frattin lost ice time to young players such as William Nylander and Connor Brown, but still produced in his limited role. On February 9, 2016, Frattin was included in a blockbuster nine-player deal that focused around Dion Phaneuf moving to the Ottawa Senators.[19] It was the third time Frattin had been involved in a trade with the Maple Leafs in as many years. Frattin was loaned back to the Marlies the following day by the Senators to finish the season.[citation needed]

As a free agent from the Senators, Frattin opted to continue his career in the AHL, signing a one-year deal with the Stockton Heat, an affiliate of the Calgary Flames on September 1, 2016.[20] On July 18, 2017, it was reported that Frattin had signed with Beijing's HC Kunlun Red Star, the only KHL team based in China.[21] However it was later confirmed to have fallen through as he signed with fellow KHL club, Barys Astana, on August 23, 2017.[22]

After two stints with Barys, Frattin as a free agent continued his tenure in the KHL, agreeing to a one-year contract with Ak Bars Kazan on May 4, 2019.[23] In the following 2019–20 season, Frattin played among the club's top nine forwards, registering 8 goals and 28 points in 56 regular season games. He added 5 points in their first-round series sweep over HC Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk before the remainder of the playoffs were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a free agent, Frattin made a familiar return to Barys Nur-Sultan, agreeing to a one-year contract for his third stint with the club on May 19, 2020.[24] In 2021, Frattin extended his contract to spend his 4th season with the club.[25] After a rough start to the season was marked by Frattin catching COVID-19 in October, Frattin left the club to attend the birth of his daughter in December.[26][27] It was already reported that Frattin was not returning, but the club finally agreed to a termination of his deal in March of 2022.[28]

In June 2022, Frattin signed with HC Bolzano of the ICEHL.[29] He had 9 goals and 17 assists for 26 points in 40 games, adding 8 points in 19 games in a run that saw Bolzano lose in the finals to EC Salzburg.

Career statistics

edit
    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2006–07 Fort Saskatchewan Traders AJHL 58 49 34 83 75 15 5 6 11 10
2007–08 U. of North Dakota WCHA 43 4 11 15 18
2008–09 U. of North Dakota WCHA 42 13 12 25 48
2009–10 U. of North Dakota WCHA 24 11 8 19 21
2010–11 U. of North Dakota WCHA 44 36 24 60 42
2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 1 0 0 0 0
2011–12 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 56 8 7 15 25
2011–12 Toronto Marlies AHL 23 14 4 18 20 13 10 3 13 6
2012–13 Toronto Marlies AHL 21 9 8 17 14
2012–13 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 25 7 6 13 4 6 0 2 2 0
2013–14 Los Angeles Kings NHL 40 2 4 6 11
2013–14 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 4 0 1 1 0
2014–15 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 9 0 0 0 4
2014–15 Toronto Marlies AHL 59 26 22 48 26 5 3 3 6 14
2015–16 Toronto Marlies AHL 71 13 21 34 51 1 0 0 0 0
2016–17 Stockton Heat AHL 54 18 18 36 18 3 0 1 1 2
2017–18 Barys Astana KHL 42 11 18 29 64
2017–18 Lausanne HC NL 2 0 2 2 0
2018–19 Barys Astana KHL 52 17 22 39 27 12 9 2 11 2
2019–20 Ak Bars Kazan KHL 56 8 20 28 20 4 3 2 5 0
2020–21 Barys Nur-Sultan KHL 49 11 16 27 16 6 1 2 3 6
2021–22 Barys Nur-Sultan KHL 33 5 4 9 10
NHL totals 135 17 18 35 44 6 0 2 2 0
KHL totals 232 52 80 132 137 22 13 6 19 8

Awards and honours

edit
Award Year
College
All-WCHA First Team 2011
AHCA West First-Team All-American 2011
WCHA All-Tournament Team 2011 [30]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Matt Frattin". Team. Toronto Maple Leafs. Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  2. ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 6, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  3. ^ a b Schlossman, Brad (December 18, 2010). "The Road to Redemption". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
  4. ^ "On the point: After getting kicked off the UND men's hockey team, Frattin cleans up his life and works his way back". InForum. December 19, 2010. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  5. ^ "WCHA suspends North Dakota forward Matt Frattin for a game after hit". NHL.com. Canadian Press. March 16, 2010. Retrieved March 3, 2011.
  6. ^ "Men's Division I Hockey Overall Statistics: 2010–2011". USCHO.com. Retrieved March 28, 2011.
  7. ^ "Frattin sniping from all over". Grand Forks Herald. November 26, 2010. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
  8. ^ Miller, Patrick (March 7, 2011). "North Dakota's Frattin finds next gear late in turnaround season". USCHO.com. Retrieved March 12, 2011.
  9. ^ Borzi, Pat (April 2, 2011). "On New Path, Leading to Frozen Four". The New York Times. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
  10. ^ Schlossman, Brad (April 7, 2011). "Frozen Four preview: Frattin alone in spotlight". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved April 8, 2011.[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ "Frattin Named WCHA Player of the Year". WZAD. March 10, 2011. Retrieved March 28, 2011.
  12. ^ "UND's Frattin a Hobey Baker Award finalist". The Dickinson Press. March 17, 2011. Retrieved March 28, 2011.
  13. ^ Longley, Rob (April 9, 2011). "Leaf rookies get feet wet". The Toronto Sun. Retrieved April 10, 2011.
  14. ^ "Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs Game Boxscore - 11/19/2011". Archived from the original on November 21, 2011. Retrieved November 20, 2011.
  15. ^ "Leafs Sign Frattin, Hamilton & Rynnas". Toronto Maple Leafs. July 1, 2012. Retrieved July 1, 2012.
  16. ^ "LEAFS ACQUIRE BERNIER FROM KINGS FOR FRATTIN, SCRIVENS, PICK". TSN. June 22, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2013.
  17. ^ "Marian Gaborik traded to Kings". ESPN. March 5, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  18. ^ "Leads re-acquire Frattin from Blue Jackets for D'Amigo". The Sports Network. July 1, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  19. ^ "Maple Leafs deal D Phaneuf to Senators in nine-player trade". ESPN. February 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  20. ^ "Heat sign five to AHL deals". Stockton Heat. September 2, 2016. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
  21. ^ "Ex-Leaf Frattin signs with Chinese KHL club". TSN. July 18, 2017. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  22. ^ "Replenishment in the ranks of Barys" (in Russian). Barys Astana. August 23, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  23. ^ "Matt Frattin has signed a contract with Ak Bars" (in Russian). Ak Bars Kazan. May 4, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  24. ^ "Matt Frattin returns to Barys" (in Russian). Barys Nur-Sultan. May 19, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  25. ^ "«Барыс» продлил контракт с Фрэттином на год. Он проведет в команде 4-й сезон". www.sports.ru (in Russian). Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  26. ^ "Форварды «Барыса» Фрэттин, Асетов и Алексей Зубов заразились коронавирусом". www.sports.ru (in Russian). Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  27. ^ "Эксперт КХЛ Шевченко: «Фрэттин не вернется в «Барыс»". www.sports.ru (in Russian). Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  28. ^ "«Барыс» расторг контракт с Фрэттином. Канадец покинул расположение клуба в декабре в связи с рождением ребенка". www.sports.ru (in Russian). Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  29. ^ Tommasini, Luca (June 17, 2022). "Mit Matt Frattin kommt ein Spieler mit NHL und KHL Vergangenheit nach Bozen". Hockey Club Bozen (in German). Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  30. ^ "WCHA Tourney History". WCHA. Archived from the original on July 2, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
edit
Awards and achievements
Preceded by WCHA Player of the Year
2010–11
Succeeded by
Preceded by WCHA Most Outstanding Player in Tournament
2011
Succeeded by